Charlie has the seeds in his pocket. Grandpap has the watering can. Together, they’ll grow great watermelons, maybe even a wishing watermelon. All summer long, Grandpap tries to guess Charlie’s wish. Will it be a dog, or a fishing pole or a swimming pool? And in between the work of growing the watermelons, Charlie and Grandpap have wonderful summer adventures like fishing, swimming and playing basketball. In the end, Charlie surprises Grandpap by holding out the watermelon seeds and wishing for another summer like this one. Watermelon Wishes is about enjoying and appreciating time spent with loved ones.

How it was written. . .

One day, I was thinking about my childhood. I remember some wonderful times.
● a giant family water fight
● picnics and swimming at Keosauqua State Park
● coming home to the wonderful smell of dinner cooking on the stove
● listening to my mom read books
● playing catch in the backyard with my dad
● neighborhood games of hide and seek that lasted for hours and covered the entire block
● climbing giant dirt hills, exploring creeks and woods
● day-long doll playing
● the Ring-A-Ling game my sister and I invented to avoid going to sleep (We would call each other’s rooms as if we were on the telephone and leave hysterical messages. Or at least we thought they were funny.)

Then I tried to remember all of the presents I had received over the years. Funny, but I couldn’t recall a lot of those. This thought made me so aware that time together is a great and wonderful gift. I am so thankful for those times. I hope through my book Watermelon Wishes children will understand that spending time with people you love is so much more important than the things you have.

Reviews

• “But what is evoked for the young reader is a very powerful relationship between grandfather and grandson that’s captured well in the acrylic and gouache illustrations that picture the two closely together, emphasizing the power of their love for each other and linking it to the promise of new seeds from old fruit, year after year.”
-Christian Home & School, October 2007